Polish rod steps



May 15, 1956 R. E. ROSE POLISH ROD STEPS Filed Aug. 20, 1954 INVENTOR.Haber! E. Rose BY fl/ fi ATTORNEYS United States Patent O POLISH RODSTEPS Robert E. Rose, Odessa, Tex., assignor to Skinner BrothersCompany, Tulsa, Okla., a partnership Application August 20, 1954, SerialNo. 451,137

3 Claims. (Cl. 304-28) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in polish rod steps.

One object of the invention is to provide an improved step which may bereadily placed on the polish rod of a pumping well and locked inposition on said rod, when a workman desiring to work upon the fixturesat the upper end of the rod, places his feet upon the step.

A particular object of the invention is to provide an improved polishrod step which has a toggle locking action, whereby positive holding ona highly polished and oily surface is obtained without marring saidsurface.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved step havinga rod engaging member provided with an upstanding, triangular guard onits upper end, disposed to discourage a workman from removing one footfrom the step arm and placing it upon the rod engaging member, whichwould result in shifting his weight and thus loosening the step upon thepolish rod.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved polishrod step constructed to provide a tight grip upon the rod and includinga pivoted step arm having thereon a protrusion located to bind the rodin a hanger and bring the head of the rod into locking engagement withthe rod.

A construction designed to carry out the invention will be hereinafterdescribed, together with other features of the invention.

The invention will be more readily understood from a reading of thefollowing specification and by reference of the accompanying drawings,wherein an example of the invention is shown, and wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a step constructed in accordance withthe invention, locked on a polish rod which is shown in dotted lines andthe feet of a workman standing upon the step.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the step,

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the step in position on a polish rod, butwith the step arm raised and unlocked,

Fig. 4 is a similar view with the step arm lowered and the device lockedon the rod, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged perspective ofthe face of the locking head.

In the drawings the numeral designates, in general, a bracket or supportmade of suitable metal and adapted to engage on a polish rod A, such asis used on oil and water wells. The bracket is elongated horizontally orhas its greatest length longitudinally thereof and has its centralportion open, as is indicated at 11 which tends to reduce its totalweight. At its left-hand end, when in a horizontal position and asviewed in the drawings, the bracket has an upright hanger 12 whichextends vertically of the left-hand or outer end of said bracket. Thishanger has an inner vertical gripping face 13 which is substantiallyU-shaped in cross-section and merges on its inner side into the adjacentsurface of the bracket, so as to snugly engage around the polish rod.

The right-hand or inner end of the bracket, a flat inverted yoke 14extends outwardly from the upper portion of said bracket and ispreferably integral with the bracket. This yoke, which in efiect isoverhanging, has a flat-sided opening 15, and the flat-sided bearingboss 16 at the outer end of the shank 17 of a step arm 18, is journaledin the opening 15 on a pivot bolt 19 passing transversely through theyoke and the boss and secured by a nut 20.

The arm 18 is continued from the boss 16 in the form of a downwardlyinclined finger or extension 21 which is merged at its outer end into alocking head 22 having an upright transversely curved face 23. At thetop of the face is a protruding arcuate bead or grip 24, extendingthereacross. When the arm is swung downwardly to an approximatelyhorizontal position, the grip engages the polish rod and holds the steparm 18 in supporting position. A step plate 25 is cast medially alongthe upper edge of the arm and has an upstanding guard 26 at its outerend.

The upper surface of the step is roughened or serrated, as indicated at27 in Fig. 1. A workman standing on the step engages his insteps on thesurface 27 with his heels against the edge of said step as is shown inFig. l. A triangular guard 23 is cast upon the bracket and functions todiscourage the workman from placing his foot upon the bracket and thusshifting his weight from the step plate 25. Reinforcing ribs 29 are castalong the back face of the bracket.

The operation of this step is unique and important. It will be observedthat the distance from the pivot bolt 19, on which the arm 18 swings, tothe surface of the bead 24 is slightly greater than the distance fromsaid bolt to the imaginary line between said head and the bottom edge ofthe face 23, and consequently, a toggle action is had. When a mansweight is imposed on the step 25, the grip is swung into engagement withthe polish rod A. This causes the hanger 12 to be drawn tight around therod (Fig. 3). Continued weight or downward pressure on the step, gives asnap action whereby the grip 24 which is tightly binding on the surfaceof the rod rides upwardly past a dead center position until the bottomedge of the curved face 23 rides into binding engagement with the rod(Fig. 4). This locks the step in position and holds it firmly againstdisplacement. The device is readily removed by swinging the arm 18upwardly which moves the finger 21 and head 22 downwardly, whereby thehanger 12 may be disengaged from the rod. While the grip 24 and the headface 23 are shown as transversely curved, these elements may have otherforms.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory thereof andvarious changes in the size, shape and materials, as well as in thedetails of the iilustrated construction may be made, within the scope ofthe appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A polish rod step including, a support, an upright hanger on thesupport having a vertically-extending concave face for receiving apolish rod, a step arm pivotally mounted on the support at a pointspaced laterally from the hanger and in horizontal alinement with thehanger, an extension carried by the arm and projecting from the pivotpoint of the arm toward the concave face of the hanger for engaging andclamping a polish rod in engagement with the hanger face, the end ofsaid extension being formed with a rod-engaging face, and a transversehead on the upper portion of the latter face spaced further from thepivot point of the arm than the imaginary line between the apex of thebead and the lower margin of the rod-engaging face of the extension,whereby as the extension is swung upwardly into engagement with a polishrod a toggle action is obtained I 3 in forcing the extension upwardlypast initial engagement of the head with the polish rod to bring theapex of the bead and the lower margin of the rod-engaging face of-theextension into clamping engagement with the rod.

2. A polish rod step as set forth in claim 1, wherein the upper marginof the support is inclined from a point above the hanger downwardly to apoint above the pivot point of the arm, whereby a workman is preventedfrom standing on the support and the foot of the workman willautomatically be shifted outward to the step arm.

3. A polish rod step as set forth in claim 1, wherein the rod-engagingface of the extension is transversely curved for conforming to thesurface of a polish rod, and the transverse bead on the upper portion ofsaid face is correspondingly curved in a transverse direction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

